If You Expected Stephen Colbert's National Anthem Performance To Be A Joke, Think Again

"This is the best performance of the anthem I've ever heard."

Don't underestimate Stephen Colbert. A lot of baseball fans learned this lesson on Friday night when Colbert joined actor Patrick Wilson to perform the national anthem before the Mets played the Yankees at New York City's Citi Field.

Considering Colbert hosts a late-night talk show and previously kept up a funny TV persona on The Colbert Report, you might expect his national anthem performance to be silly. But you would be forgetting that the comedian also has a love of musical theater, and has previously sung on The Late Show.

As for Patrick Wilson, his musical credentials are undeniable. He's appeared in several stage musicals, and was Tony-nominated for his performances in Broadway productions of The Full Monty and Oklahoma! He also co-starred in the 2004 movie adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera.

They may seem like an unlikely pairing, but Colbert and Wilson were obviously well-prepared for the performance, which they beautifully harmonized. Wilson nailed the high notes, and Colbert offered a little acapella percussion.

So uh ... this is the best performance of the anthem I've ever heard, maybe? Stephen Colbert and Patrick Wilson? https://t.co/VeOspckN5Y

The pair earned praise for their performance before it was even finished, as the crowd at the game burst into applause during the long final note. As sports writer Justin Bourne wrote on Twitter, "So uh ... this is the best performance of the anthem I've ever heard, maybe?"

A YouTube viewer also applauded them for performing the song at its "proper duration, adding, "They sang it according [to] the proper meter and timing, didn't make it about them."